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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 ATHENS 000249
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OVIPPRELCVISECONENRGPTERPGOVTUCYGR
SUBJECT: SENATOR DURBIN DISCUSSES CYPRUS, TURKEY, VISA
WAIVER, AND ENERGY WITH FM BAKOYANNIS, PARLIAMENT HEAD
SIOUFAS
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: In a cordial and very substantive
discussion during his visit to Athens, Senator Richard Durbin
told Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis about his impressions
of the chances for a settlement of the Cyprus issue following
his visit to Nicosia and underscored the new administration's
desire to have strong relations with Greece. Bakoyannis said
Greece was keenly interested in a Cyprus settlement, but she
wondered whether the Turkish "Deep State" shared this
interest. On Turkey's EU prospects, Bakoyannis expressed
similar perplexity about Turkish intentions, but said Greece
remained steadfast both in supporting Turkey's EU candidacy
-- as long as it met all criteria -- and in insisting that
the EU not move the goalposts on Turkey. Bakoyannis also
noted Athens' disappointment that its overtures toward Ankara
had not resulted in improved relations and complained about
Turkey's outstanding threat on casus belli, Turkish
overflights of Greek islands in the Aegean, and Turkey's
long-standing refusal to allow the reopening of the Halki
Orthodox seminary. In response to Bakoyannis' question about
progress on the Visa Waiver Program for Greece, Ambassador
noted that we have been waiting for the GOG to return to us
comments on the agreement on criminal data sharing (PCSC),
which the Greeks had had since October. Bakoyannis promised
a text by February 20 but warned the U.S. could not expect to
get everything it wanted in the agreement.
¶2. (SBU) In his meeting with Parliament President Sioufas,
Senator Durbin provided an overview of his visit to Cyprus,
discussed the new administration's economic stimulus plan,
and stressed the importance of Turkey re-opening the Halki
seminary. Sioufas updated the Senator on the Greek
Parliament's ratification of Albania's and Croatia's NATO
accession protocols, Greek efforts to encourage both sides to
find a solution to the Cyprus issue, and recent developments
in Greece's development of energy supplies. END SUMMARY.
STRONG U.S./GREECE TIES
-----------------------
¶3. (SBU) This was Senator Durbin's first meeting with FM
Bakoyannis. The Senator said the purpose of his Athens visit
was to report on his trip to Cyprus and to see "friends of
the U.S." He was excited about the election to the
Presidency of his fellow Senator from Illinois, and though
the Senator stressed that the CODEL was not an official
delegation, they were "official friends" of President Obama
and wanted to come to Greece early in the new administration
to show that bilateral relations were strong. Mr. Alexi
Giannoulias, the Illinois State Treasurer, who was
accompanying the CODEL at his own expense, reiterated that we
looked forward to good relations and wanted to send a strong
message of U.S. willingness to help on the Cyprus issue.
Bakoyannis extended her congratulations on the President's
election and noted that there were high expectations but also
many global problems. The United States could count on
Greece's friendship, and she said Greece's relationship with
the U.S. was amongst its best, based on common values, common
interests, and the support of the Greek diaspora in the U.S.
CYPRUS
------
¶4. (SBU) Bakoyannis said Greece was keenly interested in
solving the Cyprus issue and had encouraged both the Greek
Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots to work hard. The incentives
were high, particularly for the Turkish Cypriots, who would
become full-fledged members of the EU. It was important,
however, to understand the fundamental differences between
the two sides. She argued that while the Greek Cypriots were
totally independent of Athens, the Turkish Cypriots were not
independent and were greatly influenced by Ankara. She asked
rhetorically whether the Turks were really interested now in
a solution or were using the process as a bargaining chip for
EU accession. She said the Turks told her they were
interested, but she was unsure what to believe. At the same
time, there was the question of who would ultimately decide
on Turkish cooperation, the GOT or the "Deep State" (the term
sometimes used to refer to the forces within the Turkish
General Staff who supposedly represent the real seat of power
in Turkey).
¶5. (SBU) Senator Durbin said the CODEL had asked Turkish
Cypriot "President" Talat directly whether he could act
ATHENS 00000249 002 OF 004
independently. Talat had responded that Ankara had the power
to stop him from negotiating but thus far had not done so.
Bakoyannis said Talat had been a good negotiating partner for
Cypriot President Christofias, and she believed that if
Ankara left Talat alone, an agreement would happen. She
emphasized at the same time that any agreement had to be
viable from the point of view of the EU. It would not work
if every time the Cypriot representative in Brussels needed
to make a statement or take a decision, there had to be
political negotiations back in Cyprus. Also, the question of
security guarantees had to be dealt with. Bakoyannis said
the old guarantees dating from the 1960s (which had justified
the Turkish invasion in 1974) were now "old fashioned" and
"dangerous." Rights of outside countries to intervene were a
recipe for disaster; the EU was the only guarantor any party
should need.
TURKEY
------
¶6. (SBU) In response to the Senator's question whether Turkey
-- especially the "Deep State" -- was truly interested in EU
membership, Bakoyannis said she had the impression the Deep
State, which was Kemalist and secular, did not want the EU
interfering in Turkish internal affairs, especially on issues
of democracy and human rights. On the other hand, the Muslim
party, which portrayed itself as a modern, European,
democratic party interested in EU membership, nevertheless
hewed to some Muslim policies, particularly in international
affairs. Despite these ambiguities on the Turkish side,
Bakoyannis said Greece's position was clear: Turkey must meet
all the accession criteria; there could be no changing of the
rules for Turkey. At the same time, Greece stressed to the
EU that its position must be consistent: the EU could not
say, "Turkey, you met all the accession criteria, but we
still don't want you because you're a Muslim country or too
large." She said she did not expect Turkish accession for
about 15 years and, by then, the world would likely look
considerably different and opposition to Turkish accession
might lessen. In the meantime, the EU had to be transparent
on the accession issue. The Turks also needed to open their
ports to Cypriot vessels. Restricting their entry, she
argued made no sense for Turkey, which will depend on Cyprus'
vote to enter the EU.
¶7. (SBU) On Greek-Turkish bilateral relations, Bakoyannis
said there had been some improvement, such as PM Karamanlis'
visit to Ankara a year ago -- the first time in 49 years that
a Greek prime minister had gone to Turkey. But relations had
not improved as much as they had expected, and Bakoyannis
cited several outstanding irritants, such as the casus belli
the Turkish parliament had proclaimed when Greece ratified
the Law of the Sea treaty. Turkish provocations in the
Aegean, which had been increasing lately, were another
irritant. Turkish refusal to allow the opening of the Halki
Seminary was another. Four U.S. presidents had pushed the
Turks to open the seminary but had failed. Bakoyannis said
she argued to the Turks that with the seminary open, the
Greek Ecumenical Patriarch (headquartered in Istanbul) would
become Turkey's best ambassador, demonstrating Turkey's
tolerance. The Turks argued back to Bakoyannis that if they
opened Halki, they would also have to open many more
problematic Muslim academies. Bakoyannis said she did not
believe their argument, however, and attributed the GOT
refusal to re-open Halki to Turkish intolerance of a
religious minority. In sum, Bakoyannis found the Turks
difficult to understand, and she said that while ruling New
Democracy and main opposition PASOK remained positive toward
Turkey's EU aspirations, the Greek public was running out of
patience.
DOMESTIC TERRORISM
------------------
¶8. (SBU) The Senator also asked about Greek domestic
terrorism, which had flared up since the riots began in
December. He inquired whether Greek terrorists were
"homegrown" and asked for the Foreign Minister's analysis and
advice. Bakoyannis, who lost her own husband to assassins of
the Greek terror group 17 November in 1989, said the recent
flare-up of violence had two causes. One was rebellion of
Greek students following the police shooting of the
15-year-old boy last December. The "children" in the streets
ATHENS 00000249 003 OF 004
were angry, a reaction compounded by the tremendous pressure
Greek students were under from their parents to perform well
in the latter stages of high school to be competitive to
enter Greek universities. The ND government, Bakoyannis
said, was trying to relieve the latter problem through
education reform. The second cause were the hardcore
terrorists and anarchists, which numbered approximately
600-700 and were aided by criminal elements. She said new
groups had emerged recently and were using gas bombs,
shooting cars and even a policeman. She said that, as in the
past, Greece would need the cooperation of its friends to
defeat these new terrorists. At the same time, the new crop
was "too messy" and much less disciplined than 17N to be
serious.
VISA WAIVER
-----------
¶9. (SBU) Bakoyannis asked about Greece's application for the
Visa Waiver Program. The Senator said he understood this was
an important issue for Greece and that he hoped to see Greece
in the program as soon as possible. Ambassador noted that
two of three necessary documents were finished but that we
were waiting for the GOG to get to us its comments on the
agreement on criminal data sharing (PCSC), which we had
passed to Greece in mid-October. Bakoyannis responded that
she would be getting the comments of the Ministry of Justice
on Friday and would make them available to us. She
underscored that the U.S. would not be able to get everything
it wanted in the agreement "or it won't make it through the
Greek Parliament." Additionally, Bakoyannis was not happy
that the older European participants in the VWP did not have
to sign such agreements. "I don't want Greece to be treated
differently." Ambassador assured her that Greece would
receive the same treatment as other VWP countries. As for
details of the agreement, Ambassador said "that's what
negotiations are for."
BAKOYANNIS MEETING PARTICIPANTS
-------------------------------
¶10. (SBU) Participants in the meeting included:
GREECE:
FM Dora Bakoyannis
Director of the FM's Cabinet Constantin Chalastanis
MFA Spokesman Giorgos Koumoutsakos
MFA A7 Directorate for North America head Ambassador
Chryssoula Aliferi
U.S.:
Senator Richard Durbin
Ambassador Speckhard
Michael Daly, Senator Durbin's Chief of Staff
Christopher Holmes, Senator Durbin's Foreign Policy Advisor
Alexi Giannoulias, Illinois State Treasurer
Endy Zemenides, State Treasurer's Staff
LCDR Joseph Furco, Navy Liaison
Carol Kalin, Embassy Press Officer
Jeffrey Hovenier, Embassy Control Officer
Paul Carter, Embassy notetaker
PARLIAMENT PRESIDENT SIOUFAS
----------------------------
¶11. (SBU) President of the Greek Parliament Dimitris Sioufas
opened his meeting with the Senator by stressing that Greece
and the United States had stood together in all of the
twentieth century's major conflicts and that our Alliance
continues to prosper. Sioufas had taken concrete steps to
contribute. As Parliament President, he oversaw
Parliamentary ratification on February 17 of Albania's and
Croatia's applications to enter NATO. He had also helped
secure ratification of EU consideration of Albania's
application for membership, as well as to move along the
ratification of the U.S.-EU Extradition and Mutual Legal
Assistance agreements.
¶12. (SBU) Sioufas emphasized the importance of U.S.-Greek
joint work on the Cyprus issue. He hoped the Senator would
convey to Turkish leaders the "need to give up intransigent
ATHENS 00000249 004 OF 004
positions on Cyprus." He also hoped that the Senator would
raise Halki and urge the Turkish leadership to allow it to be
reopened. "Halki is a potent religious symbol. Its
continuing closure would weaken the Ecumenical Patriarch's
influence within world Orthodoxy, opening the way to
increased Russian influence in the Church."
¶13. (SBU) Sioufas also emphasized his work on energy issues,
particularly during his previous post as Development
Minister. He noted that this work had resulted in last
November's ceremony linking the Turkish and Greek gas grids,
which put Greece in the position of being the first EU member
state to import Azerbaijani gas directly from the Caspian
region. He provided a short summary of his February 16
meeting with Azerbaijani President Aliyev, which he termed
"positive." He noted, however, that Aliyev had repeatedly
referred to problems obtaining a transit agreement with
Turkey. Sioufas emphasized that true energy diversity had to
include renewables, an "important part of Greece's future."
Over the very long term, Sioufas saw nuclear fusion as being
a game changer, but its time was not here yet.
¶14. (SBU) Senator Durbin thanked Sioufas for his cordial
welcome and noted that NATO's origin lay with the Truman
Doctrine, designed to keep Greece and Turkey free. Durbin
provided a quick overview of his work supporting the stimulus
package just passed by Congress, noting the package's
emphasis on renewable energy. In this regard, he praised
Sioufas for his work on improving Greece's energy diversity.
The Senator also told Sioufas about his visit to Cyprus and
how encouraging it was that the Greek and Turkish Cypriots
"are talking." He agreed with Sioufas on the importance of
re-opening Halki seminary.
¶15. (U) CODEL Durbin departed post prior to clearing this
cable.
SPECKHARD